2026 HONDA PILOT

1 recalls, 15 complaints - 5/5 safety rating

STRUCTURE:FRAME AND MEMBERS

Defect Description

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2026 Pilot and Passport vehicles. The rear subframe bolts may have been tightened improperly.

Consequence

Loose rear subframe bolts can lead to a loss of vehicle stability or rear subframe detachment, increasing the risk of a crash or injury.

Remedy

Dealers will inspect and replace the rear subframe bolts as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed August 24, 2026. Owners may contact Honda's customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is OOY. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) inv... Read more

3,933 vehicles affected

Manufacturer: Honda (American Honda Motor Co.)

Complaint Statistics

15 total complaints 2 crashes

Top Reported Components

Component	Complaints
STEERING	4
UNKNOWN OR OTHER	3
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING	1
LANE DEPARTURE: ASSIST	1
LANE DEPARTURE: WARNING	1
LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:ELECTRONIC LOCK/LATCH ACTUATOR	1
SERVICE BRAKES	1
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM	1
SUSPENSION	1
SEAT BELTS	1

Incident date: Apr 9, 2026

When dropping off rear-seat passengers, the seat belt alarm continues to sound loudly for an extended period after passengers unbuckle and exit the vehicle. This behavior persists even after the door has been opened and closed. In contrast, the front passenger seat does not behave this way, and in m... Read more

Incident date: Jun 7, 2026

Intermittent severe shaking in steering wheel while driving at various speeds. No warning. Vehicle has less than 500 miles.

Incident date: Jun 7, 2026

Intermittent severe shaking in steering wheel while driving at various speeds. No warning. Vehicle has less than 500 miles.

Incident date: Jun 7, 2026

Intermittent severe shaking in steering wheel while driving at various speeds. No warning. Vehicle has less than 500 miles.

Incident date: May 4, 2026

Vehicle: 2026 Honda Pilot Elite AWD Current Mileage: ~3,850 VIN: [XXX] ——— Defect Summary: Persistent component defect and failure within the steering column assembly, specifically involving the steering clock spring (cable reel assembly). The vehicle experiences an audible clicking, rattling,... Read more

Incident date: Jun 13, 2026

Vehicle: 2026 Honda Pilot Elite AWD Current Mileage: ~3,850 miles Persistent component defect and failure within the steering column assembly, specifically involving the steering clock spring (cable reel assembly). The vehicle experiences an audible clicking, rattling, and binding sensation during ... Read more

Incident date: Jun 16, 2026

Slowed down to turn right into a parking lot, power steering suddenly disabled and multiple warning lights appeared on dash. Warning messages stating auto brake system disabled, lane departure assist disabled, hill assist and start disabled, and more warning lights. Steering suddenly became difficul... Read more

Incident date: Jun 16, 2026

Incident date: Mar 27, 2026

Out of the blue, the Travel Assist warning will start ringing. Sometimes it does it once, other times it can go nonstop for 10 minutes. It happens randomly and I can't make it come on. It has become a terrible distraction while I am driving. The dealer claims unless they observe it, they won't repai... Read more

Incident date: Mar 27, 2026

What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? The vehicle's cellular connectivity becomes 100% non-functioning until head unit reset. This occurs some days after the car is parked in an area without cell coverage and is then driving into cell cov... Read more

Incident date: Mar 27, 2026

Passenger front door actuator\lock mechanism does not lock/unlock the door. There have been numerous lawsuits and yet NO RECALL for this very dangerous known problem. Please advise if there is any assistance from Toyota available to cure this defect that is well known to exist. I can be reached @ [X... Read more

Incident date: Apr 12, 2026

While driving in heavy traffic on Interstate 10 west bound, I made a right blinker lane change. Right after complete lane change, vehicle emergency brake applied putting me into a spin and steering was fighting me trying to correct thus causing 2 impacts to a vehicle on side of me. It was light driz... Read more

Crash

Incident date: Apr 12, 2026

Crash

Incident date: May 17, 2026

The vehicle experienced hesitation, delayed acceleration, and multiple warning lights while driving. The loss of power was severe enough that the driver became afraid to make left turns across traffic because the vehicle would not accelerate quickly or consistently when needed. This created a signif... Read more

NHTSA Safety Ratings, 2026 HONDA PILOT

2026 HONDA PILOT SUV N/A AWD

Category	Rating
Overall Rating	5 / 5 ★★★★★
Frontal Crash	4 / 5 ★★★★☆
Frontal Crash, Driver	4 / 5 ★★★★☆
Frontal Crash, Passenger	4 / 5 ★★★★☆
Side Crash	5 / 5 ★★★★★
Side Crash, Driver	5 / 5 ★★★★★
Side Crash, Passenger	5 / 5 ★★★★★
Rollover	4 / 5 ★★★★☆
Rollover Risk	14.3%

Safety Technology

Feature	Status
Electronic Stability Control	Standard
Forward Collision Warning	Standard
Lane Departure Warning	Standard

Source: NHTSA 5-Star Safety Ratings Program. Ratings are based on crash tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

NHTSA Safety Investigations, HONDA PILOT

Investigations opened by NHTSA into potential safety defects. These are separate from recalls and may or may not result in a recall.

PE, Open , Model Year: 2023

Inaccurate Rear Passenger Seat Belt Warning Status

The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) has received 6 complaints, and multiple Early Warning Reporting (EWR) field reports alleging inaccurate rear seat belt warning status. These allegations concern both false positive and false negative statuses in model year (MY) 2023-2024 Honda Pilot vehicles... Read more

PE, Closed , Model Year: 2016

No Restart After Auto Start/Stop Engages

On June 3, 2022, the Oﬃce of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened Preliminary Evaluation PE22005 after the agency received VOQs and several ﬁeld reports concerning the Auto Idle Stop (AIS) feature on 2016-2019MY Honda Pilot vehicles. The complaints allege that the engine fails to restart on its ow... Read more

PE, Closed , Model Year: 2005

Vehicle Stability Assist Malfunction

The Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA) system in the model year (MY) 2005 Honda Pilot vehicles integrates braking control strategies for anti-lock braking, traction control, electronic stability control and brake assist functions. The system consists of a VSA modulator (an electronic control unit and el... ectronic/hydraulic actuator) that receives data from an integral brake pressure sensor and from wheel speed sensors (four wheels), the steering wheel angle sensor and a combination yaw rate and lateral acceleration sensor.Allegations of unexpected braking appear to be related to inappropriate activation of the brake assist (BA) function.The BA system is designed to minimize stopping distances in emergency braking maneuvers by rapidly applying maximum braking force when a panic stop is detected. ODI's analysis of complaints and information provided by Honda in its response to DP12-002 and PE12-028 identified fault conditions that may result in false detection of a panic stop by the BA system, resulting in unexpected, severe brake application. The VSA control algorithm should detect inappropriate BA activation in less than 1 second and turn the system off. However, some complaints allege longer duration incidents of severe braking with no brake pedal application. Honda implemented countermeasures in the control and fault detection algorithm in the MY 2006 Pilot VSA modulators, which are not interchangeable with the MY 2005 parts.Allegations of steering anomalies appear to be related to inappropriate activation of the VSA stability assist function.The VSA system uses information from the wheel speed, steering wheel angle, yaw rate and lateral acceleration sensors to calculate the rate of change in vehicle side slip with respect to time. If excessive side slip is calculated, the system modulates brake force pulses to individual or combinations of wheels to maintain stability. ODI has identified 22 VOQs and 18 Honda reports that appear to be incidents caused by a faulty yaw rate sensor. As judged by the complainants these incidents typically last two or less seconds.Honda identified a problem with faulty yaw rate sensors sending an incorrect yaw rate signal to the VSA modulator.This may result in inappropriate VSA system activation, which is perceived by the driver as a momentary steering pull.The VSA control logic is designed to detect the yaw rate sensor faults in less than one second and place the system in fail-safe mode, disabling all VSA functions.This Preliminary Evaluation has been upgraded to Engineering Analysis (EA13-002) to further assess the scope, frequency, and safety-related consequences of the alleged defect.The VOQs associated with the opening of this investigation are: Brake Assist: 10158094, 10160741, 10213049, 10247329, 10248833, 10257672, 10257728, 10260943, 10270110, 10279468, 10282189, 10321302, 10334571, 10360371, 10366406, 10367757, 10381501, 10382911, 10399198, 10407070, 10410421, 10427031, 10443505, 10447413, 10448010, 10450564, 10451781, 10453607, 10459818, 10464695, 10466790, 10472620, 10472803, 10479999, 10480852, 10481312, 10481341, 10481372, 10483238, 10486558, 10487248, 10487492, 10487554, 10487784, 10489358, 10492006, 10493019, 10494637.Yaw Rate Sensor: 10481310, 10492846, 10467571, 10368257, 10491748, 10307606, 10493497, 10194731, 10351927, 10492007, 10485841, 10462811, 10476925, 10482439, 10429988, 10487141, 10482567, 10359591, 10486281, 10486397, 10380979, 10486651.Read more

DP, Closed , Model Year: 2005

Vehicle Stability Assist Malfunction

In a letter dated April 9, 2012, a consumer petitioned the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to initiate a defect investigation of alleged stability control failures in model year (MY) 2005 Honda Pilot vehicles. The petitioner alleged that, in the malfunctioning of these systems... , steering failures occur and the brakes apply involuntarily. On June 4, 2012 the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened Defect Petition DP12-002 to evaluate whether to grant or deny the petition. The petition is hereby granted. The Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA) system in the MY 2005 Honda Pilot vehicles integrates braking control strategies for anti-lock braking, traction control, electronic stability control and brake assist functions. The system consists of a VSA modulator (an electronic control unit and electronic/hydraulic actuator) that receives data from an integral brake pressure sensor and from wheel speed sensors (four wheels), the steering wheel angle sensor and a combination yaw rate and lateral acceleration sensor. Allegations of unexpected braking appear to be related to inappropriate activation of the brake assist (BA) function.The BA system is designed to minimize stopping distances in emergency braking maneuvers by rapidly applying maximum braking force when a panic stop is detected. ODI's analysis of complaints and information provided by Honda in its response to the DP12-002 information request letter have identified fault conditions that may result in false detection of a panic stop by the BA system, resulting in unexpected, severe brake application. ODI's analysis of consumer complaints has identified 185 incidents of unexpected braking of varying duration, including several allegations of rapid decelerations from highway speeds to near stops in highway travel lanes (VOQs 10450564, 10467571, 10427031, 10257672, 10453607). Honda implemented countermeasures in the control and fault detection algorithm in the MY 2006 Pilot VSA modulators, which are not interchangeable with the MY 2005 parts. Allegations of steering anomalies appear to be related to inappropriate activation of the VSA stability assist function. The VSA system uses information from the wheel speed, steering wheel angle, yaw rate and lateral acceleration sensors to calculate the rate of change in vehicle side slip with respect to time. If excessive side slip is calculated, the system modulates brake force pulses to individual or combinations of wheels to maintain stability.Honda identified a problem with faulty yaw rate sensors sending an incorrect yaw rate signal to the VSA modulator.This may result in inappropriate VSA system activation, which is perceived by the driver as a momentary steering pull.The VSA control logic is designed to detect the yaw rate sensor faults in less than one second and place the system in failsafe mode, disabling all VSA functions. ODI has identified a total of 20 complaints that appear to be related to inappropriate VSA activation.The petition is granted.Preliminary Evaluation PE12-028 has been opened to assess the scope, frequency, and safety-related consequences of the alleged defect.Read more

HONDA PILOT - All Years Overview

Complete safety history for the HONDA PILOT across all model years (2003, 2026).

196 Total Recalls

12,785 Total Complaints

4 Investigations

600 Reported Crashes

183 Reported Fires

115 Reported Deaths

HONDA PILOT - Year by Year

Compare recalls and complaints across model years. Click any year to see full details.

Year	Recalls	Complaints
2026 (current)	1	15
2025	4	284	View
2024	6	158	View
2023	5	177	View
2022	5	227	View
2021	10	674	View
2020	11	766	View
2019	13	1,377	View
2018	7	634	View
2017	4	1,304	View
2016	8	2,335	View
2015	4	137	View
2014	3	153	View
2013	6	368	View
2012	9	228	View
2011	11	390	View
2010	10	142	View
2009	9	174	View
2008	9	165	View
2007	9	266	View
2006	10	330	View
2005	15	955	View
2004	13	644	View
2003	14	877	View

Other HONDA Models

Model	Recalls	Complaints
ACCORD	1,544	31,106	View
ODYSSEY	1,083	15,814	View
ACCORD HYBRID	883	1,156	View
CR-V	820	20,314	View
CIVIC	752	19,886	View
INSIGHT	709	669	View
PASSPORT	510	2,127	View
FIT	348	2,698	View

Vehicle Safety

Consumer Safety

Infrastructure

Public Health

2026 HONDA PILOT

Complaint Statistics

Top Reported Components

NHTSA Safety Ratings, 2026 HONDA PILOT

Safety Technology

NHTSA Safety Investigations, HONDA PILOT

HONDA PILOT - All Years Overview

HONDA PILOT - Year by Year

Other HONDA Models